Because You Look Like Her
by M. Cali' Ai
Summary: She bore a striking resemblance to someone Gray knew, all the more reason why he couldn't stand to see her cry more than any other girl he had ever met. Slight GrayxO.C.


"Well hello there, what brings you here?" Mirajane said. She was talking to a girl who had never been seen in the Fairy Tail guild. She figured that she wanted to join.

The girl was a little shorter than Lucy without heels with tanned skin and short dark brown hair. She had on a white button-up shirt that was tied above her toned stomach, bandages wrapped around her breasts and hands, and jean shorts that stopped slightly above the middle of her thighs. Mirajane looked at the large purple eyes that stared up at her then at the girl's feet, noticing that she didn't have any shoes on.

"Yeah, I wanna join Fairy Tail." She said. Then, she examined Mirajane a little more closely.

"You're pretty, miss." She said. Mirajane smiled.

"Thank you very much. I'm Mirajane. I'll take you to go see Makarov, the guild master."

Mirajane led the small girl to the back room to meet the guild master. After they had been in the back for a little while, everyone was wondering how things would work out for the girl who would possibly become a member of their guild. After a few minutes, they walked out, the new girl between Mirajane and Makarov.

"Everyone, this is our newest member. Introduce yourself." Makarov said. Everyone's attention went from the small man to the girl with large purple eyes.

"Hi, my name's Solara Jilonsen, but most people call me Laura or Larry for some reason." She said while rubbing the back of her head. Many of the people in the guild hall gasped.

"You mean you're Larry Jilonsen?" Lucy said in a surprised tone.

"Yeah, people called me that back when I could still be mistaken for a boy, but that was four years ago."

"So how old are you now?" Cana asked before guzzling whine from a barrel.

"I'm fifteen." Solara stated.

Solara had long created a name for herself as a skilled potion maker but she didn't even realize it. When she was eleven, she was sent to the woods near her home on the countryside when she stumbled across a village. Apparently, an extremely rare disease that turned those with it into plant-like beings plagued the village. She not only came up with a cure for the people who had transformed completely and partially, but she invented a vaccine to prevent the disease's transmission (she needed it keep herself from getting sick anyway). That plus a number of other jobs made her nickname famous.

"I've gotta say, it's really disappointing that I'm known as a boy." Solara stated.

"How could they mistake you for a girl, you're really cute! Not as cute as me of course, but you're still pretty cute." Lucy said while rubbing the shorter girl's head. Solara looked up at her and smiled.

"I hope someone here likes you, 'cause I already don't like you too much." She said sweetly. Lucy's jaw dropped when everyone laughed at her defeat.

"Well, at least she's honest." Gray said, only causing Cana to state that he had taken off his clothes again.

Solara stood, jaw agape as she stared at Gray. After a few seconds, she ran up to him to get a closer look, her purple eyes glistening. Gray looked up at her and smiled slightly.

"Hi, the name's Gray." He said, holding out his hand for her to shake it. Solara took the hand and held it between hers.

"Hi Gray." She half said, half sighed. Cana and the others around Gray looked at the girl that was oogling him and grinned.

"Uh, yeah. It's nice to meet you." He said awkwardly as he managed to pry his hand away.

"It's so nice to meet you too, Mr. Gray. I've heard things about you where I lived, and it's truly an honor to finally meet you." Solara continued on frantically, her face getting redder and redder with each passing second.

"So, where are you from?" Another person asked. Eventually, that person's questions and questions from other people pulled her away from Gray, where she just wanted to sit and admire the ice wizard.

"She lllikes you." Cana and Happy teased in synch.

The day went on and everyone mingled with their newest member, who was often caught glancing at Gray and blushing. As it turned out, Solara came to Magnolia so she could make a living and send for her parents, who still lived on the countryside. She didn't wear shoes because she never had in her whole life, and the soles of her feet now looked and felt like leather.

Before she knew what was happening, the day had come to a close and Solara still had one problem to solve.

"Hey, what's wrong with you?" Natsu asked when she saw her standing outside of the guild hall, her face lined with distress.

"I don't have a place to stay." She said. "Maybe I shouldn't have left home. I don't have any idea of what I'm doing!"

"Come on, don't talk like that. I know, me and Happy can take you to the place we weight train!"

And so Natsu took Solara to the place he did his weight training. She was surprised when they had to climb in through the window, and even more surprised when she saw the décor. What kind of weight room had frilly pink things all over the place? Natsu claimed that the person who lived there didn't mind at all, but when they came in, things didn't look that way.

"Natsu, Happy! What are you doing here?" Lucy screamed as soon as she laid eyes on them. After she exploded, however, she noticed the girl sitting on her bed.

"Lucy Goosey, I have a question." She said as she reached behind her. She then grabbed something and held it up.

"Where do you get underwear like this?"

After screaming at her three intruders for the next fifteen minutes, Lucy let Solara speak. She told her that to help out, she would pay half of the rent every month, carry her own weight, and join their team as she thought she would make a great addition. Potion makers weren't always viewed as fighting team additions; in most cases, they worked alone or didn't even join guilds because opening a potion shop would be easier. Solara, however, insisted that she was a greatly skilled hand-to-hand combatant.

"So you can fight? Awesome, we can have a match tomorrow!" Natsu said excitedly. It didn't matter that she was a fifteen-year-old girl, Natsu was always ready for a fight, and Solara felt the same way.

The next day, everyone stood outside of the guildhall upon hearing about Solara and Natsu's match, hoping that it wouldn't be interrupted in any way.

"Natsu, go easy on her. She's just a little girl." Gray said from the sidelines.

"No, it's alright!" Solara said to him, her voice taking an awkward pitch. She looked at Natsu.

"Fight me with everything you've got, because I'll be doing the same!"

"That's alright with me!" Natsu said back.

The person 'overseeing' their match called it to a start, and Natsu was ready to fight immediately. Sense Solara couldn't do any long distance attacks, he figured he would be a little fair. He put fire on his fists and charged at Solara at full speed, who only stood there for a few seconds. Then, he eyes grew large.

"Defend yourself!" she screamed.

Before Natsu knew what was happening, she rushed in front of him and gave him nimble and quick hits to his shoulders, arms and stomach. They didn't hurt at all, but they caught him by surprise. Then, she swept below his left arm, pulled his right arm behind his back, jumped on him so that he fell and kept his left arm pinned to the ground, proving that she was a lot stronger than she looked.

"I believe that settles it." Solara said calmly, getting off of Natsu's back.

"What're you talking about? I've still got some fight in me!" Natsu hollered back. He tried to make more fire on his fists but all he saw was dimly burning flames.

"What the-"

"Hm, I still need to work on that one, huh?" Solara said while rubbing the back of her head. "Oh well, we can still finish this with regular hand to hand combat."

After the two went at it for a while, the fight finally ended with Solara putting Natsu in a submission hold, and coming threateningly close to breaking some limbs. Naturally, that wouldn't stop Natsu, but Makarov stopped the fight because he knew just how hardheaded he was.

After the fight, people presented Solara with two similar questions; how did she learn to fight like that, and how did she stop Natsu's flame. As it turned out, Solara's other 'alias', Laura Jilonsen, had a less known title for fighting skills. Not many people had ever seen her in action, so it was more like a myth. People wouldn't believe because people would return with stories about how they couldn't use their magic so they got beat. Solara was coming close to perfecting an art that her parents taught her. By hitting pressure points at precise angle witht he correct amount of force, she could temporarily stop their magic abilities.

The story behind her training was silly. Apparently, since her parents were sharecroppers, they didn't have a lot of money. They were, however, blessed with fighting skills passed down their families for generations. When they had Solara was born, they saved up money so they could get the only child they planned on having at least one toy; a small brown teddy bear with button eyes.

Before they day they brought their daughter the bear, the considered whether or not they would train their daughter when she was old enough. They were shunned for society because Solara's grandfather on her father's side was known as a ruthless killer. When they brought the teddy bear to their nine-month-old daughter, she looked at it with her large purple eyes full of wonder. Her small hand reached forward and touched the bear's stomach, rubbing it gently. Then, she balled up her tiny fist and punched it, giggling happily.

At first her parents ignored it. It was just a small coincidence, right? Wrong. Whenever she played with her teddy bear, she was seen punching it in its stomach. They thought of it as a sign. She did kick a lot when her mother was pregnant with her. Maybe their daughter was a born fighter.

Then, they finally came to the conclusion that they would train her, and they began as soon as she could walk. To some, it may have seemed brutal, but she really enjoyed it. When she was old enough to leave home, they decided to let her do whatever she wanted, which didn't necessarily have to include fighting. She chose to fight anyway.

There was one skill, however, that Solara's parents tried to teach her that didn't quite stick…

Lucy was flat broke, and rent was almost due. Solara had been living with her for a little while, and she always kept up with her half since she was always taking jobs. She _was_ a part of Natsu's team, but she hardly really spent much time with them in spite of her obsession with Gray. In most cases, one potion job and two bandit fighting jobs would cover her half, but I digress.

It was obvious that Lucy getting her half of the rent before it was due would be out of the question, so Solara left town for a little while on jobs. Much to her surprise, she was getting homesick, so rather than waiting until the morning to get back to Magnolia, she came back as soon as possible, which left her walking the streets at night.

Unlike when Lucy came back home, there weren't people out on the river telling her to be careful; it was far too late anyway.

Solara was getting really close to Lucy's apartment, and she was coming up on the most dreaded part of the trip; crossing the bridge. She always avoided bridges with water underneath them whenever she could. Her legs trembled with each step as she tried to cross the bridge as quickly as possible. So fast, that she didn't notice a wizard cloaking himself to look like the bridge. He tripped her and his accomplice cut her over-the-shoulder bag, pulling the money out of it immediately.

"Give me that back!" she yelled, feeling dizzy upon standing. Not only was she standing on a bridge much longer than she had intended, but her bag had some potions that shouldn't be mixed. Her assailants must have done their homework because they had on gas masks.

"You really shouldn't carry potions like that, girly. You can hardly even fight!" One of them said, catching a punch she tried to throw with ease.

"If we leave you up here, this crap might kill ya. Why don't you go for a nice cold swim so you can wake up a bit?" The other one said. They picked her up and held her over the edge of the bridge.

Solara's heart was racing, but she could barely speak.

"No… don't do it… please." She begged tiredly. She knew that at worst, the potions would put her to sleep. Sure, it was inconvenient, but it wouldn't be nearly as bad as being tossed into the river. Even so, the two men threw her into the water and ran off, not even looking back.

Solara didn't sink immediately. She reached out her tired arms and clawed at the air above her. The cold water did wake her up a little, but it wasn't like it would miraculously give her the skill that she never picked up; how to swim.

"Help! Somebody, please!" she screamed, her voice not as loud as she wished it would be. After desperately trying to survive, her strength was giving out because of the panic. Gradually, her head began to slip under the surface of the water. She held her breath for as long as she could, and then closed her eyes, preparing her self for death.

"I'm going to die…" she thought. "I couldn't bring mama and papa to Magnolia. I couldn't even help Lucy pay the stinking rent. I'm a failure…"

Then, Solara lost consciousness, almost sure that she was in her watery grave.

Gray was walking the street that night. He himself had just come back from a job, and returning that night would be most convenient. He was about to go to his own home until he heard screaming. Following his first instinct, he followed his ears and ran straight to the scene. Just as he arrived, he saw a hand slipping under the surface of the water. He stripped out of his shirt at record speed (which is almost hyper-sonic seeing how he could normally strip at the drop of a dime) and jumped into the water. He saw who it was that he was saving and suddenly, his body sped up. Gray reached Solara in almost no time at all and brought her to the surface of the water.

"Solara, can you hear me? Say something!" he said.

When he heard nothing, Gray got to the riverbank as fast as he could and laid her still body on the cobblestone. Upon placing his ear to her chest, he could hear that her heart was still beating and that she was still breathing, but faintly. He could tell that her lungs had water in them. He sat down and placed Solara on his legs, stomach down. Then, he pushed upward on her back, hoping that she would cough up the water.

"Come on, Solara! Stay with me!" Gray said. He became frantic in almost no time at all, and he pushed at her so hard that the bandages wrapped around her chest were coming undone.

"Solara, wake up! Solara!"

Just as he called her name, Solara coughed up water in rather large amounts and got up, gasping for air. Gray sighed and mentally noted how she chose the perfect day to wear a black blouse, as her bandages were falling off. After the coughing stopped, Solara's eyes grew wide as she began to touch her arms and face.

"I'm alive." She said quietly. Then, she looked up at Gray, surprised that she hadn't noticed who her savior was until that moment.

"Gray, I'm alive." She whispered.

"Yeah, aren't you glad?" he asked. Much to his surprise, Solara's eyes spilled over with tears.

"I-I.. was s-s-s-so scared!" was all she could manage to say between her sobs.

Gray looked at the crying girl before him and acted on pure impulse. He dove in and hugged her trembling form trying to stop the sobbing as soon as possible.

"Stop crying." Gray whispered gently. He placed her hand on the top of her head and held her a little closer.

"You look so much like her, I can't stand to see you crying like that." he finished.

"I look like-" Solara began to speak between a few soft hiccups, but Gray stopped her. He pulled away and looked at the girl and, for a fleeting second, he saw Ur.

"What do you like the most?" he asked out of the blue. He still had his arms around her, so he could tell that she was still shaking.

Solara blushed a little. She knew who she liked the most, and that was him, but since he asked for a thing, she named the first thing that came to her mind.

"Flowers." She said softly. Gray let go of her and held his fast to his palm, doing Ice Make magic to make her a rose out of ice. He handed it to her and she looked at it.

"It's so pretty." She said. Gray noticed her shiver a little bit.

"Wait here, I'll get my coat and take you to Lucy's." he said.

Gray went across the river and came back immediately, placing his coat on Solara. She was still really shaken up and she could barely stand, so Gray took the liberty of carrying her the rest of the way home on his back. While he was walking, he decided to ask her a question.

"So, you can't swim?" he said.

"Yeah, I never really caught on." She replied sheepishly.

Gray chuckled a little. "We'll work on that as soon as possible."

_A/N:_

_Random Person: Bring out your dead bodies._

_(Man rolls out cart with four bodies)_

_Me: I'm not dead yet._

_Richard Pryor, Elvis and Tupac: Neither are we!_

_Me: Look, despite your own quotes, crazy beliefs and letters from Willow Smith, y'all mutha fuckas is dead. Wait, why dafuq am I on a cart with dead people? Shit! (hops up screaming)._

_So, I just had it say it; I ain't dead yet. I haven't been writing in a while and if it just so happens that you're reading my Bleach and Blue Exorcist storied, then this is a nice word from me. I'm still alive, just enjoying my summer of doing absolutely nothing._

_Depending on reader response, I might right more. Something like "Solara Jilonsen and Team Natsu" or "The Adventures of Solara and Gray and Them" or something lie that. Review if you want more._

_Alright, alright, alriiight! Solara can Chi-block. Yes, that was inspired by Avatar. As for her purple eyes, I don't know. All of my characters have brown hair and eyes, but sense this is a wizard anime I thought I'd give her a creepy eye color. The first person that popped in my mind was Lelouch from Code Geass, so I made her eyes purple._

_If you're just reading some shit from me and you're interested in my other stories, I have one word of advice. Do not (I repeats; DO NOT) read "They do WHAT?". Looking back, it was a hunk of shit and I need to do some revising, but when I'm honest with myself, I'm either gonna do it in like five years from now or never._

_So yeah, if you wanna read the sequel (Ichi's Angels, oodles better if you ask me) PM me for a summary of the first one and I send you one._

_Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or any other work mentioned. All I own is my O/C. All rights to their original owners._

_I'm just gonna quote SpokenReasons from now on._

"_I ain't shit…_

_yet!"_

_~M. Cali' Ai_


End file.
